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More Than 10,000 Untested Rape Kits In Missouri Set To Be Cataloged

5 years 1 month ago
Missouri has more than 10,000 untested rape kits sitting on shelves in police departments and hospitals, but the state is finally set to have a full inventory of those kits by the end of October. In this segment, host Sarah Fenske talks with St. Louis Public Radio reporter Jaclyn Driscoll about her reporting on the federal Bureau of Justice Assistance grant set aside for this project.

Get To Know St. Louis’ Sister City In Senegal

5 years 1 month ago
Host Sarah Fenske talks to Senegalese artist Modou Dieng, who curated a new contemporary art exhibition at the Barrett Barrera Projects center. “Saint Louis to St. Louis: The City on the River meets River City" notes the parallels between the two cities named for St. Louis the King — one in the Midwest and one in the West African country of Senegal.

A Conversation With NPR Correspondent Aarti Shahani

5 years 1 month ago
Host Sarah Fenske sits down with NPR’s Silicon Valley correspondent Aarti Shahani who discusses her memoir about her family’s journey from pre-partition India to Casablanca to New York. It’s called “Here We Are: American Dreams, American Nightmares.”

How City And School District Boundaries Separate St. Louisans

5 years 1 month ago
Host Sarah Fenske delves into how municipal boundaries and school district boundaries were drawn to exclude and how local policies and services were weaponized to maintain civic separation. Joining the conversation are: history professor Colin Gordon, author of "Citizen Brown: Race, Democracy, and Inequality in the St. Louis Suburbs," as well as Erica Williams, a North County resident and founder of the nonprofit A Red Circle, and David Dwight, of Forward Through Ferguson.

Birthday Celebration, Strauss And Mozart Highlight Leonard Slatkin’s Return To Powell Hall

5 years 1 month ago
This weekend’s concerts at Powell Hall are a homecoming for Leonard Slatkin in more ways than one. In addition to returning last year to live in the St. Louis area, the music conductor laureate of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is taking the podium, in part, to revisit his SLSO sendoff in 1996. Slatkin will be conducting the world premiere of variations on a theme of Paganini that were composed for Slatkin's recent 75th birthday. The compositions update five original themes inspired by the Italian-born composer that were first performed when Slatkin’s 17-year tenure with the SLSO was ending.

Metro, CMT And Riders Talk Transit Shortly After Rollout Of Bus System Overhaul

5 years 1 month ago
Those who staff and depend on the St. Louis region’s public transit system have seen some significant changes in recent days, particularly with the implementation of Metro Reimagined, Metro Transit’s overhaul of its Missouri-side bus lines. Host Sarah Fenske talks with transit riders and other stakeholders about the current state and future of public transit in the region. Joining the conversation are Metro Transit executive director Jessica Mefford-Miller, Citizens for Modern Transit board member D'Andre Braddix and St. Louis resident and frequent transit rider Mitch Eagles. The discussion also includes pre-recorded comments and live calls from commuters.

St. Louisans Weigh In On What Makes A Workplace Where Women Thrive

5 years 1 month ago
Women comprise nearly half of the United States’ civilian labor force, according to the Department of Labor’s latest statistics. Yet their annual median earnings — about $42,000 — still fall about $10,000 short of the median paycheck men see each year. And along with the compensation gap, other workforce gender-equity disparities remain common for many industries and employers. The Women’s Foundation of Greater St. Louis aims to measure progress on that front with its Women in the Workplace Employment Scorecard. The voluntary rating system, which is now underway for this year, includes a voluntary employer survey exploring policies, practices and work culture. In this episode, host Sarah Fenske talks with Women’s Foundation Executive Director Lisa Weingarth about the organization’s findings on what makes a company work for women. The conversation also includes Affinia Healthcare's Kendra Holmes and NCADA's Stacie Zellin as well as the perspectives of fellow working women Catherine Brown and Emily Cantwell on what makes a job environment a great one — and what doesn’t.

How One Family Helped To Integrate University City High School

5 years 1 month ago
University City, Missouri, is considered to be among the more diverse communities in a region still grappling with the stubborn legacy of segregation. But five decades ago, things were different in U. City, including at the local schools. When Judy Gladney began attending University City High School in the '60s, she was one of its very first African American students, and found herself bridging two disparate worlds. So did Eric Vickers, Gladney’s future husband. Years later, the two would send their children through the same school district, which is now largely non-white. As Gladney looks toward her 50th high school reunion this month, she joins host Sarah Fenske alongside her daughter Erica Vickers Cage and local journalist and storyteller Ellen Futterman.